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Former rugby star Jarryd Hayne clears first hurdle with 49ers; now real work begins

Jarryd Hayne looks like a natural. It’s not that different than what he did for the Parramatta Eels of Australia's National Rugby League over the last nine years.

Because of his seemingly-seamless transition, Hayne made the 49ers’ 53-man roster following a strong preseason. He found his niche on special teams, returning nine punts for 163 yards. But as a running back in a cutthroat, all-business league, things won’t get any easier. Hayne’s real work begins now.

"I temper all this speculation because I don’t want to take anything away from what the man has achieved. But, all he’s achieved was an opportunity to be in the locker room," 49ers coach Jim Tomsula said Thursday.

After all, the NFL preseason and regular season can feel like two different sports. Teams don't want to put their established players in harms way. Preseason games are often used to identify who will fill out the bottom of the roster — 60-70 players for maybe 10 spots.

The 49ers signed Hayne in March to give him a shot in camp. He's passed the first test with an impressive month, but the team has been coy about Hayne's role for Monday night's season-opener against the Vikings at Levi's Stadium.

“We’ve got to kind of keep everything in perspective and understand the preseason is the preseason and right now is right now,” special teams coordinator Thomas McGaughey told reporters this week. “…So we’ve just kind of got to temper it all and take it all with a grain of salt and move forward. And, as the weeks go on and things start to progress, then we’ll address it.”

Everyone in the 49ers’ locker room touts Hayne’s natural ball-carrying ability. At 6-2, he’s a little taller than most running backs and tends to run more upright. But he had 175 yards on 25 carries as a back. Upright or "pads down" — what Hayne wants to do — seven yards per carry is impressive.

Hayne's been learning to run "American style" under the tutelage of his roommate and starting running back Carlos Hyde, and the praise from teammates and coaches seems to be in unison.

“Just a natural," 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick said in April. "Since the day I’ve met him, since every workout he’s been at, he’s going to give you everything he has. It doesn’t seem like there’s much of a learning curve for him."

“Just natural open field run skills. All you got to do is just got to his YouTube highlight tape and you see it," McGaughey said. "He can stick his foot in the ground, he can make people miss."

"He has all the talents and athleticism to be able to play in this league and to be able to play at a high level in this league," running back Reggie Bush said in the spring.

Natural ball-carrying ability is just a part of what makes the NFL's best backs so good. The best tend to stick around, while the rest disappear before they even get going.

Running backs play an average of 3.11 seasons in the NFL, according to a 2013 study. That’s by far the shortest of any position.

Carrying the ball and getting hit so often (through high school, college, professionally) takes a toll on a runner, and by the time he hits his late 20s, he’s a step (or two or three) slower. The oldest active running back in the NFL is Fred Jackson, 34, and he didn’t begin his NFL career until 27. Frank Gore, 32, is the oldest starter. Hayne is 27.

For the time being — probably not Monday, since he won't be active for the game — Hayne will not serve as a traditional running back. He’ll likely contribute on kickoff and punt coverage and returns. Hayne excelled returning punts in the preseason, but receivers Bruce Ellington and DeAndrew White are expected to get a shot there, as well.

In the NFL, punters have such mastery of their craft that returners don’t always get a chance to make a play. Devin Hester, probably the best return man in league history, fielded just 18 punts in 16 games last season because teams try to keep the ball out of his hands by kicking it out of bounds or high enough that he needs to call for a fair catch.

That's not Hayne's style. He made his first fair catch in the 49ers' final preseason game against the Chargers at the wishes of the coaching staff, although he wasn't quite sure why.

"Every game I’ve gotten better and worked hard. I’ve got to lower my pads, get low, get through tackles," Hayne told reporters after the win. "This was probably my most complete performance with everything we’ve been coached up on."

Prior to that, he brought out an old trick. Running people over is natural. The rest of it is a work in progress. As for how he's fitting in?